Finding affordable childcare is a priority for many families, but navigating the available financial assistance programs can be overwhelming. A great starting point is understanding what is child care subsidy, a program designed to help ease the financial burden by providing support to eligible families. By knowing the ins and outs of this subsidy, parents can make more informed decisions about how to access affordable care for their children.
Number of Children in Childcare
If you have more than one child aged 5 or younger in childcare, you may get a higher Child Care Subsidy (CCS).
You can get the higher subsidy if all of these apply:
- You get or will be eligible for CCS
- Your family’s combined income is under $365,611
- You have more than one CCS eligible child aged 5, or younger
- Your higher rate child or children are using childcare.
You’ll continue to get your standard CCS percentage for your ‘standard rate child’ (usually the eldest child) and any children aged 6 or above.
For the ‘higher rate child’ (usually your younger eligible child or children), you can get a 30% higher subsidy. This is a 30% increase on your standard CCS percentage. Centrelink will cap this at a maximum of 95%.
Combined Household Income
The Child Care Subsidy percentage your family is entitled to depends on your family’s combined household income.
| Your family’s combined Household Income | From 8th July 2024 Child Care Subsidy Percentage |
|---|---|
| $0 to $83,280 | 90% |
| More than $83,280 to below $533,280 | Decreasing from 90% The percentage decreases by 1% for every $5,000 of income a family earns |
| $533,280 or more | 0% |
Witholding
Centrelink withholds 5% of your Child Care Subsidy payments to accommodate for any changes to your expected and combined household income. This helps to reduce the likelihood of you getting an overpayment.
Activity Levels
The Child Care Subsidy percentage your family is entitled to also depends on your family’s activity levels.
Recognised activities include
- Paid work including being self employed
- Paid or unpaid leave, including paid or unpaid parental or maternity leave
- Unpaid work in a family business
- Unpaid work experience or unpaid internship
- Actively setting up a business
They can also include any of these
- Doing an approved course of education or study
- Doing training to improve work skills or employment prospects
- Actively looking for work
- Volunteering
- Other activities on a case by case basis
| Fortnightly Activity Levels | Hours of Subsidised Child Care Each Fortnight |
|---|---|
| Less than 8 hours | 0 hours if you earn above $83,280 24 hours if you earn $83,280 or below 36 hours – Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander child, regardless of family activity |
| More than 8 to 16 hours | 36 hours |
| More than 16 to 48 hours | 72 hours |
| More than 48 hours | 100 hours |
Hourly Fee Cap
The amount of Child Care Subsidy you can get depends on the type of approved childcare you use. It also depends on the age of your child.
The 2024-25 hourly rate caps for each care type are outlined below.
All Montessori Academy childcare centres are eligible for the Centre Based Day Care Fee Cap which is an allowance of $14.29 per hour for children under school age, or $12.51 for school age children (from 8th July 2024).
| Type of Childcare | Hourly rate cap for children below school age | Hourly rate cap for school age children |
|---|---|---|
| Centre Based Day Care i.e. Montessori Academy Childcare Centres | $14.29 | $12.51 |
| Outside School Hours Care – before, after and vacation care | $14.29 | $12.51 |
| Family Day Care | $13.24 | $13.24 |
| In Home Care | $38.87 per family | $38.87 |
Understanding your childcare subsidy eligibility is a great way to take some of the financial pressure off when it comes to childcare costs. Once you know the criteria, you can tap into the support that’s available to you. you can also try a childcare subsidy calculator to get an estimate of the financial assistance you may qualify for. With this information, you can plan ahead with confidence, knowing you’re getting the support you need to care for your little ones.
